River Island State Park

On Sunday we packed up and moved south along the Colorado River to a place just south of Parker Dam. Parker Dam is what creates the backwater that extends north to eventually form Lake Havasu. Here below the dam the water is crystal clear and flowing at a moderate pace. We launched the kayaks from the campground and found it difficult to move very far upstream due to the current and the boat traffic.
The park is nestled in a box canyon right on the river and we are surrounded by cliffs. There is no TV reception here because of the surroundings. yesterday we loaded the kayaks and headed a few miles north to the Bill Williams River National Wildlife Refuge and kayaked from the Parker Dam backwater up the Bill Williams River for a couple of miles until we couldn't go any further. It was a beautiful paddle into the back country and we saw grebes and an osprey plus numerous ducks and turtles along the way. The mountains towered above the river in places and provided a spectacular background. The marsh grass along the banks made it seem like the everglades only we didn't see any alligators!
The weather has taken a turn for the better and we have been enjoying days in the high seventies and nights in the sixties with lots of sunshine. Also the stars have been awesome at night since there is not much light pollution in the area.

Kayaking on the Colorado below Parker Dam near River Island Campground.

The river runs past some rocky cliffs and small coves.

River Island S.P. from the river.

Looking downstream from the park.

California is on the west bank of the Colorado and Arizona on the east, although here the river turned so that California was actually east of us!

A view from the mountain looking down on our campground.

A grebe on the Bill Williams River.

No gators here.

But ospreys just like in Florida.

Getting near the head of the river in the Bill Williams Wilderness. 

Davis Camp and now Lake Havasu

Camping at Davis Camp was good and we enjoyed the four nights we spent there. We enjoyed the Lake Mojave area but the winds kept us off the lake so our kayaks never got wet. We did go into Laughlin and walked the river walk and played slots at a couple of the nine casinos, but we walked away a couple of dollars poorer than when we started. Oh well, not much damage done on the penny slots!
On Monday we packed up camp and went further south on the Colorado River to Lake Havasu, Arizona. We are now in Lake Havasu State Park on the Colorado River. The park is next to the London Bridge that connects Lake Havasu City to the Island District which is being developed as resorts and residential communities. The bridge is the original London Bridge that used to span the river Thames in London, England. It was bought at auction by Robert McCulloch in 1968 for $2.5 million and the bricks and blocks were numbered and disassembled to be shipped overseas to California. The 130,000 tons of material were unloaded and then trucked to Arizona. It was all re-assembled and reinforced to be better than the original. The bridge was dedicated in 1971 and spans a canal that separates the mainland from the island. This is a huge tourist area in Arizona and is popular with boaters and campers. We sit at the campground and are constantly bombarded by the noise from the huge powerboats launching from the state park ramps. These boats have two to three V-8 engines roaring away and they zoom all over the lake. I don't think I've ever seen so many big speed boats even on Lake St Clair.

We biked to the bridge one day and crossed to circle the Island. We kayaked another day and went through the canal and along the beaches on the south side of town. Lots of kids at the beach and lots of boats touring around including an amphicar that reminded me of Uncle Dennis!

This is a cool place with lots to do and we plan on coming back in the future to enjoy the lake and surroundings.

The London Bridge from the sidewalk below. Shops and restaurants line the banks here.

Kayaking from the State Park we went through teh canal and under the span.

I can't imagine the effort to dis-assemble, ship and re-construct this old bridge.

Powerboats like this were popular here and we could hear the roar constantly from camp.

Hey, is that Uncle Dennis?

A great desert resort.

We were blessedd with a gorgeous sunset on Thursday.

This was a view from our campsite!

Posting from Lowe's

We've been away from Wi-Fi signals for some time now, but today I made the trip to Lowe's to update everyone.

March 02

Joshua Tree National Park was beautiful with it's mountains and high desert terrain. The Joshua trees of course were the most unique thing here. Black Rock Campground is on the north west corner of the park and there were entire forests of the trees scattered about. We took several hikes from camp and were treated to spectacular views of the park and surrounding area. On Wednesday we drove to the visitor center near the town of Joshua Tree and boarded a shuttle for a tour of the park. They started a shuttle service that allows you to get on and off at different stops in the park and to do some exploring and see different areas. I was glad to have someone else driving so that I could enjoy the scenery. We got off at one stop and walked through Jumbo Rocks campground then hiked over to Skull Rock. The park is a must see for anyone who enjoys national parks and to see what has been set aside to be preserved for the generations.

After four nights we were low on fresh water in the camper. We wanted to refill but the park was having issues with the fresh water hook-up and we decided to move on. The cold nights were becoming a problem and we wanted to get to a lower altitude and some warmth. We decided to head down to the Colorado river and called for camping. We found that Davis Camp County Park near Bullhead City had campsites available on the river and we decided to go there for the four nights before our next reservation started at Lake Havasu. Much to our surprise we found the park after driving through Casino Road in Laughlin Nevada. It turns out the camp is right across the river from the casinos of Laughlin! We found the camp to be very accommodating with water and electric hook-ups. The sites were nice and they had four sections to camp in with different styles of sites from RV resort to dry camping on the river. We found a nice camping loop that we fit in nicely and we were right next to the river. The park was huge with about a mile of shoreline from Davis Dam all the way to the beginning of Laughlin on the Nevada side. The weather here was around seventy compared to fifty at Joshua Tree. More important the nights were in the fifties instead of 31 degrees!

Davis Dam is just above us on the river and it forms Lake Mojave and Lake Mead Recreation area starts above the dam. We are looking forward to exploring the rec area and Laughlin in the next few days.

Joshua tree at the national park Dr. Zuess anyone?

A coyote in the campground.

An old pine in the mountains.

We were thinking of making a bid on this new camper.

Skull Rock at Joshua Tree N. P.

Another view.

Driving through the Mohave Desert we saw Amboy Crater, an old volcano that was visible from 30 miles away.

A view across the desert.

Looking downstream on the Colorado River at Laughlin Nevada. Our camp was in Bullhead City, Arizona.

A day trip to the Lake Mead Recreation area just upstream from Davis Camp were we were staying.

They were generating power here for Laughlin and the surrounding area.

On the Road Again

Sunday. It's our move to Joshua Tree for our reserved campsite. The forecast is for temperatures in the fifties for highs and thirties for lows. I sure hope it's sunny!
The last few days...

Hiking the Hell Hole Canyon near Borrego Springs

A different kind of cactus on this hike.

The ochotillo were leafing and blooming. They only do this when they get rain.

Beaver tail cactus were here too.

The mountains to the east of Salton Sea.

A view to the north west. 

This place was a playground for tourists in the 1950's and 60's but now is not used as much since the water has gotten so salty. Runoff from the mountains brings minerals and when the water evaporates the minerals remain. The sea has no outlet.

Camped at Salton Sea Rec Area. The trains go by every hour and aren't far behind the campground.

Today we go back up to Joshua Tree N. P.

Camping by the sea (Salton Sea that is).

We enjoyed the area around Barrego Springs and did quite a bit of hiking in the hills. The views from the trails were awesome with palm groves in the higher canyons and desert views to the horizon. We were constantly on the lookout for Bighorn sheep but the encounter with the ten on Wednesday was the only one we had. The small town was neat too and we did a little exploring there too. We both agreed we could come back here to camp again if we are ever out this way.

Yesterday we packed up camp from Barrego Springs and drove up the mountain to Joshua Tree N.P. We didn't have reservations for two nights, then we have an eight night stay at Black Rock Campground at Joshua Tree starting on Sunday night (already reserved). When we were planning our trip Cottonwood campground was on a first come, first served basis and we thought it wouldn't be a problem getting in early on a Friday. It turns out that starting in 2018 Cottonwood is on a reservation system and it is now all booked up! We asked about alternate campsites and were told the entire park was full and that camping was available on private camps out of the park or on BLM land outside the park. We're now camping at Salton Sea State Recreation area for two nights as an alternative to staying up in the mountain near Joshua Tree National Park. Since the high temperature up in the mountains was only in the forties at four thousand feet and highs near the sea were in the sixties we decided to go back to the lower elevations and camp here at Salton Sea, after all it was only thirty miles back off the mountain! After feeling the forty eight degree temperatures yesterday afternoon we are hoping for a warm up next week when we go back up!

We're enjoying just hanging out here and are doing some cleaning and re-stocking before going back off the grid for eight days.

East of the Mountain

We survived our two cold nights at Mission Trails Regional park with no electricity or heat. It got down to 31 degrees Friday night! 

We're now camping in the desert just east of the mountains, west of the Salton Sea. This is another unique area in California, a couple of hours away from both San Diego and Los Angeles. Needless to say the weekends here are very busy! We came in on Sunday of the Presidents day weekend and the desert was full of campers everywhere. Most were here with dune buggies and quad runners or dirt bikes. This is a playground for off road vehicles.

We are camped at Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and are surrounded by mountains. The campground is nice with full hook-ups. All we are missing is Wi-Fi. On Monday we woke up to big winds blowing and we had to gather up everything that we had outside because it was blowing away! Looking across the campground we could see everyone struggling with the wind. Tents were rippling and blowing and people were hunkering down. We decided it would be a good day for a ride and not for hiking.

We took a drive to explore Salton City and the Salton Sea. On the way back to the highway we could see that most of the campers that were here on Sunday were now gone. The wind was starting to blow a lot of sand around and drove most folks out of the desert. When we got to the highway the gas stations were full of RV's and campers and all were gassing up to make the drive home. We drove toward the sea and were seeing houses scattered around on a grid of streets, but no Salton City. We continued to the shore and saw Johnson's Landing and signs for resorts and camping, but there was still no Salton City. We made our way back to the highway and headed for Salton Sea State Recreation Area on the northeast side of the sea. The body of water here is 33 miles long and about fifteen miles wide. It is a relic of the Bay of California and later a flooding of the Colorado River. The water is fifty percent saltier than the ocean and only Tilapia and Pup fish can survive in the salt.

When we got to the recreation area we had lunch then watched a filmstrip about the history of the Sea.

Later we walked the shoreline and enjoyed the odor of dying fish. The beach was littered with dead tilapia and barnacles and the sand is barnacle shells in different stages of de-composure. This all makes for fertile soil and the farmland next to the sea is producing grapes, lettuce, dates and citrus.

We also learned that this is a major migration route for hundreds of thousands of waterfowl and shorebirds on their way north and south in the spring and fall.

Sonny Bono, yes the Sonny Bono of Sonny and Cher fame, the avid skier and congressman from California, spent much time lobbying for the preservation of the Salton Sea and the surrounding wetlands in order to ensure that the area remains viable as a recreation and natural area.

On Tuesday the winds were gone and we hiked up to Palm Canyon in the park. It was a mile and a half up the canyon to an oasis of native palm trees. We were hoping to see some of the big horn sheep in the mountains. The park holds the biggest population of these sheep in California and they are often seen here near the springs. On the way down we took an alternate trail that gave us huge views of the desert and surrounding mountains. Beautiful! Later, a drive into the mountains to a town called Ranchita. Not so much of a town as an area with ranches and homes spread across a high mountain flat. When we were at the top of the mountain here we saw areas of snow in the shade from a storm the night before. The temperature at the top was only 43 and the snow did not melt in the areas that were shaded.

Looking around at the scenery here reminds one of the old westerns and it may well have been the backdrop for a lot of cowboy movies.

Today while hiking in Coyote canyon we found the bighorn sheep. We came upon seven rams at the head of a wash and there were three ewes up on the hi;ll. Magnificent!!

The crusty shoreline of the Salton Sea

Palms at the head of Palm Canyon at Anzi-Borrego

We finally found the bighorn sheep

The seven rams were amazing

Three ewes watched from the ridge

Our week in Chulla Vista is coming to an end

We are moving again. Today we move into the foothills east of San Diego to Mission Trails Regional Park. We will still be near San Diego, but at a slightly higher elevation.
We've seen a lot of the sights around town and it's been a great week. Lots of sunshine, but just a bit cooler than the weather we were getting in the desert. Our days here have been topping out at about 70 degrees.
On Tuesday we took a drive into the foothills where our next camp will be. We wanted to be sure we could get the camper up the mountain and into the camp we have reserved. Then Wednesday we explored the coast north of downtown.
Point Loma is the north side of San Diego bay. This is where the first Europeans set foot into what is now the United States. Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo was a Spanish explorer who led three ships north from Mexico to explore the North coast. He came ashore here and proclaimed the land under the ownership of the King of Spain. (Pretty gutsy since there were already thousands of native people living in the bay area!). There is a National Monument here at the point with spectacular views of  San Diego and the entire bay area. You can see Tijuana, Mexico in the hills to the south.
On the north end of the point is a lighthouse and to the west is the great Pacific Ocean. We explored the top of the point, then drove down to the coast and scrambled around on the cliffs to the water.
Later we drove to La Jolla a resort area on the coast a little further north. There we saw lots of sea lions on the shore barking and waddling around on the rocks. It was like being at the zoo, but Oh, that smell!!
Today we pack up camp and move on. Hope all is well with everyone.

The lighthouse at Point Loma was put into service in 1855.

On the coast of Point Loma

A view down to San Diego Bay

Another view with the Cabrillo Monument at the National Park

They sculpted the statue, but they had no records of what Cabrillo looked like.

The military presence is everywhere here with military being the number one industry around the San Diego area.

The cliffs on the west side of Point Loma

Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery. There are over one hundred thousand graves along both sides of the road.

A look at La Jolla coastline.

Looking east

Sea gulls and sea lions everywhere.

This guy was a beach bully pushing all the other males around. We were eating lunch at the park and could hear the sea lions barking from a quarter mile away.

It was quite a sight seeing so many sea lions. The smell from the fish they had digested and expelled was overpowering. 

There were at least a hundred of them laying around on the beach and rocks.

Another chapter in our winter journey. Peace to all.